Title: Upside Down in the Middle of Nowhere
Author: Julie Lamana
Pages: 320
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Publication Date: April 8, 2014*
AR Levels: TBD
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17815784-upside-down-in-the-middle-of-nowhere
In a nutshell: It's the end August 2005, and Armani is turning ten years old - a landmark birthday that she is tickled pink about. She can't stop thinking about every little detail of her party, but her plans are interrupted when one of the most devastating hurricanes in history comes barreling through her Ninth Ward home, uprooting her family and testing her mettle. Armani must fight for hope in this touching novel about family, bravery, and love.
I'd recommend it to grades: 5 to 8
I'd recommend it to: anyone who liked Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes, anyone who's experienced a natural disaster, and readers who enjoy heroic female main characters
What I like most about this book: I have to be honest; I have a soft spot for Katrina survival books since I lived in South Louisiana at that time, and this one is the best one I've read since the aforementioned Ninth Ward. The
narration of 10-year-old Armani is honest, brave, and funny (at times),
and the setting is completely realistic and captures the terror, chaos,
tension, despair, and hope of post-Katrina New Orleans. I was moved in
more ways than one. You'll need a box of tissues for this one. Don't say I didn't warn you. :)
Single favorite moment (without getting spoiler-y): I really don't want to give away too much, but there's a scene at the Superdome where you truly see what little Armani is made of, and it's one that equally heartbreaking and empowering.
Star rating (where 5 stars is awesome and 0 stars is atrocious): Absolutely 5 stars. I know it's only February, but this may very well end up in my top 10 for 2014.
*I received an ARC of this title from the publisher via Edelweiss.
Title: Out of The Easy
Author: Ruta Sepetys
Pages: 346
Publisher: Philomel Books
ISBN: 9780399256929
Publication Date: February 12, 2013
AR Levels: Book Level: 4.0; Interest Level: 9th to 12th; Points: 11.0
Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11178225-out-of-the-easy
In a nutshell: On the outside, Josie Moraine appears to be a normal, bright high schooler with a promising future. Josie works at a bookshop in 1950 in New Orleans, and she's saving up to go to college. However, there's more to Josie than meets the eye. She's the daughter of a prostitute and also works part-time cleaning up the brothel her mother lives in. As hard as Josie tries to leave The Big Easy, the more her family secret drags her back. Just when Josie thinks her big break has finally come, tragedy strikes, and her mother is wanted for murder, and like it or not, Josie is pulled into the dark underbelly of the French Quarter once again.
I'd recommend it for grades: 10 and up (for language and subject matter)
I'd recommend it to: Louisianians, murder mystery fans, students who can empathize with Josie's tough family life
What I liked most about this book: Josie is a kick-butt heroine. She's cool, calm, and collected no matter what stressful situation she's put in, and she's incredibly strong considering how quickly she had to grow up. She's definitely a great role model for teens. Personally, I also loved the setting. 1950's New Orleans plays out as equally beautiful and despicable. You see both sides of the tracks from the poorest to the richest as the plot unfolds. It made me miss Louisiana something awful. :) And the COVER! Oh, the cover! Gorgeous.
Single favorite moment (without getting spoiler-y): Josie and Patrick, the bookshop owner, like to play a couple of games that are pretty funny. In one, they ask each other which literary character they'd prefer to marry, and in another, they use hand signals to try to predict what genre of book a customer will buy when they walk in. It provides some much needed comic relief for the book.
Star rating (where 5 stars is awesome and 0 stars is atrocious): 4 stars
Title: Being Henry David
Author: Cal Armistead
Pages: 320
Publisher: Albert Whitman Teen
ISBN: 9780807506158
Publication Date: March 1, 2013
AR Levels: TBD
Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16042447-being-henry-david
In a nutshell: When a boy wakes up in Penn Station in New York City with the clothes on his back, $10 in his pocket, a copy of Henry David Thoreau's Walden and no memory of who he is, he names himself "Henry David" or "Hank" for short and sets out to find out where he came from, but there a darkness in him that's telling him he may not like what he finds out when his memories begin to return. This thriller takes you through the underbelly of life on the street in New York and then to the idyllic woods of Walden Pond in Massachusetts, where "Hank" hopes the words of Walden and its setting might give him clues as to who he is and why he is on the run.
I'd recommend it for grades: 10 and up
I'd recommend it to: adrenaline junkies, thriller lovers, and fans of mysteries
What I liked most about this book: It grabs you from the first sentence and never lets you go. I read it in two sittings only because I had things to do. I was a bit skeptical because I thought this book was in danger of being a complete bore since it was based around Thoreau's Walden (which I hated), but I was wrong! It's a fast-paced thriller that also has a deep psychological and self-introspective narrative too. Best of both worlds!
Single favorite moment (without getting spoiler-y): This book features a motorcycle-riding, tattoo-sporting research librarian who acts as a Good Samaritan toward "Hank." There are all sorts of awesome in that character, and he's very believable.
Star rating (where 5 stars is awesome and 0 stars is atrocious): 3 stars
Title: A Girl Named Mister
Author: Nikki Grimes
Pages: 223
Publisher: Zondervan
ISBN: 9780310720782
Publication Date: August 6, 2010
AR Levels: Interest Level: 6th-12th grades; Book Level: 4.7; Points: 2.0
Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8266889-a-girl-named-mister
In a nutshell: This is the story of two teenaged Marys - Mary Rudine (also called Mister), a 14 year old New Yorker, and Mary, a young Jewish girl who lived long ago in Nazareth. You may think these girls have little in common, but you'd be wrong. Both bear the weight of teen pregnancy, and through a book of poems written from the Virgin Mary's perspective, Mister begins to find hope in her situation. Told in free verse, this novel does not shy away from the tough issues surrounding teen pregnancy (the ridicule, the fear, the emotional and physical pain, etc.), and yet it's incredibly beautiful at the same time.
I'd recommend it for grades: 7th-12th
I'd recommend it to: teen moms, teen dads, counselors and parents who encounter teen pregnancy, and fans of verse novels, and anyone looking for a hope-filled book to read in the Christmas season
What I liked most about this book: The parallels the author draws between the two girls are seamless and breathtaking. These two voices flow in and out wonderfully, and there are individual poems that deeply moved me (and I'm not usually a huge poetry fan). I definitely want to read more of Grimes' novels now.
Single favorite moment (without getting spoiler-y): I love the way Mister's friend Sethany learns to love Mister through her pregnancy. It's a true testament to godly friendships.
Star rating (where 5 stars is awesome and 0 stars is atrocious): 4 stars
Title: Because It Is My Blood
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Pages: 350
Publisher: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux
ISBN: 9780374380748
Publication Date: September 18, 2012
AR Levels: Interest Levels: 9th-12th grades; Book Level: 4.5; Points: 13.0
Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13163011-because-it-is-my-blood
In a Nutshell: Anya Ballanchine, heiress to an illegal chocolate business, has just been released from a short stay in juvie, and her troubles are only beginning. Her ex-boyfriend and son of the district attorney, Win, is already dating another girl, her father's legacy as the chocolate mob boss is in danger as Ballanchine Chocolate is in disarray, and not one single school in the city will accept her for her senior year. Anya must decide if she will accept her fate as the future face of the Manhattan chocolate black market or try to run while she can. This is a tale of love, finding oneself, loyalty, and crime, and it will grip you every step of the way.
I'd recommend it for grades: 8 to 12. There's some bloodshed. Mob story, remember?
I'd recommend it to: guys who like mob stories (This is like The Godfather with a hot chick.), girls who like star-crossed love stories, teens who still want lots more dystopias, and anyone who likes chocolate or New York City
What I liked most about this book: I adored the first book, All These Things I've Done, and I couldn't wait to read this one. It didn't wow me like the first one, but all the characters I love are still loveable, and all the page-turning suspense is still there too...maybe even amped up a bit from book one. The dialogue is a bit cheesier than the first though, so that made me not like it quite as much. I still wait anxiously for book three though!
Single favorite moment (without getting spoiler-y): At the very end, the New York Public Library at Bryant Park (one of my favorite buildings in the world) plays an important role in the set-up for book 3. See if you recognize it. Anya and Win also attend a classic movie in the park in the summer, which was something I enjoyed the summer I spent in New York too. It's nice to see that even amid the chaos of future Manhattan, they still show classic movies in the park. :)
Star rating (where 5 stars is awesome and 0 stars is atrocious): 3 stars (Book 1: All These Things I've Done is easily 5 stars. Read it first. It will rock your world.)
Chris and I thought it would be fun from time to time to pick a book for each other to read that we might not normally read. He picked this one for me, and I'll admit, I was skeptical, but I ended up liking it.
Title: Playground
Author: 50 Cent
Pages: 314
Publisher: Razorbill
ISBN: 9781595144348
Publication date: January 1, 2012
AR levels: Interest level: 6th and up, Book level: 5.4, Points: 7.0
Goodreads link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9754801-playground
In a nutshell: Butterball is sent to see a therapist after attacking a friend on the playground at his school. To the casual bystander, it appears to be an unprovoked act of violence, but through the eyes of this troubled teen, the reader begins to see just what lead to his actions, and it's anything but what one might think. Take a walk in Butterball's shoes, and you'll learn what it feels like to be a bully and to be bullied too. This is a book for anyone who's ever felt misunderstood or had a misunderstanding derail his or her life.
I'd recommend it for grades: 9 to 12 (There is a good deal of cursing, references to some mature themes, and off-screen drinking and violence.)
I'd recommend it to: future filmmakers (Butterball loves making movies and talks a lot about film), anyone who's ever felt bullied or been tempted to bully someone themselves, and professionals who work with tweens and teens
What I liked most about this book: My favorite thing about this book is that you get to see the horrors of bullying from both sides of the coin in one character. Butterball lashes out at others because of pain in his own life, and he also is a victim of bullying himself, finding himself eating lunch alone in the restroom many days. Yet, he finds a way to stop being the bully and stop being bullied. It'd be a great read for a kid who's bullying others or being bullied himself. Also, Butterball is just so loveable. You really feel for this kid. You hurt when he hurts. You cringe when he does something wrong. You cheer for him when he does something right. The relationship between him and his therapist is both emotionally charged and sweet too. There's lots of great character development in this book, and the writing style is melodic too. 50 Cent definitely has a way with words.
Single favorite moment (without getting spoiler-y): There's a moment when Butterball and his dad are shopping for new shoes when he sees the most beautiful pair of sneakers he's ever seen and he describes them, saying, "they were really incredibly beautiful - the way a sunset or the last shot of Planet of the Apes, the original I mean, not that remake..., the way it cuts from the beach to that wide shot of the Statue of Liberty" (111). At the beginning of this book, I was a bit worried I'd be able to relate to Butterball as a character, but by page 10 or so I was already feeling him. After this scene where he falls in love with some shoes, I was definitely understanding him because who hasn't done that? It's such an innocent and universal moment that quickly turns sour, but that's spoilers. ;)
Star rating (where 5 stars is awesome and 0 stars is atrocious): 3 stars
